CROSSING 52 INITIATIVE, INC.
BLURRING Racial Barriers Crossing 52 Initiative, Inc. received a $16,000 grant in 2005 from The ECHO Fund and the Ann and Clay Ring Fund. In 1997, the Ann and Clay Ring Fund was established as an unrestricted fund. Crossing 52 created social capital through a cross-cultural exhibition of art titled “Blurring Racial Barriers.” Hosted by SECCA, Delta Fine Arts, Diggs Gallery at Winston-Salem State University, and Salem College, it featured more than 200 artists and involved joint marketing and audience participation. PRINTMAKER AND BOOK ARTIST TERRY SCHUPBACH-GORDON AND HER HUSBAND, PHOTOGRAPHER AND PRINTMAKER TOBY GORDON, LIVE IN WINSTON-SALEM AND EXHIBIT THEIR WORK NATIONALLY. TERRY TALKS ABOUT THE COMMUNITY COOPERATION AND COLLABORATION DEMONSTRATED IN “BLURRING RACIAL BARRIERS.”
The show took four galleries and turned each one upside-down. People who normally gravitated to SECCA, for instance, visited three new galleries. And by doing that, they crossed the entire spectrum of ways of looking at art. Discussions between races will continue. We are now aware of new perspectives. People from all walks of life want racial barriers blurred. People who cared deeply about racial issues saw them from many different viewpoints — through
TRADITIONALLY, WE THINK OF GENEROSITY as giving to someone
the eyes of the artists. Racism has a special relevance to this area because of our
who doesn’t have much. Someone less fortunate.
history. But the world is changing, and this project gave artists an opportunity to
“Blurring Racial Barriers” exhibited another kind of generosity — a generosity that gave people the opportunity to give and take equally, to share each
say, “This is important to me.” Through this project people also have learned that the arts community is
other’s experiences. The project was about giving back to the community and
larger than one venue. Art does one thing — transfer one human experience to
asking the community to give something it hasn’t given before.
another human being’s heart. And that’s essential for the world to change. The
The project asked people on all sides of the issue of race to be their best — to be all they can be.
arts are revolutionary. They change the human heart. And that’s what this exhibit did.